The Case of the Somerset Farmer
The Case of the Somerset Farmer is an Air Police era short story which was first published in the 1963 Daily Mail Boy's Annual. It was not collected and republished in any anthology put out during the lifetime of W. E. Johns and therefore remained relatively unknown until it was collected and published as part of Biggles - Air Ace by Norman Wright in May 1999 and again in April 2008. Synopsis A Somerset farmer insists that Biggles do something about an aircraft which has been flying low over his house. Plot (click on expand to read) John Moxen, a farmer from Somerset calls on Biggles at Scotland Yard and demands to know why Biggles has not replied to his letter complaining about an aircraft which has been flying low over his farm at night. At first Biggles explains that he cannot possibly deal with every complaint about aircraft noise, but Moxen is persistent, and as he describes the nature of the disturbance, Biggles begins to see that there may be something unusual about it. For one thing, there is no airfield within 20 miles of the farm. The aircraft has been coming on and off for three months, and always when there is a full moon and when the wind is coming from the southwest and always between two and four in the morning. By examining an Ordnance Survey map of the area, Biggles sees a long field suitable for landing a light aircraft when the wind is coming from the southwest. Biggles reasons that the aircraft can glide in silently, but to take off in the wind, it would have to apply power and fly low over Moxen's farmhouse. Ginger takes an Auster to check the farm out and confirms that the pasture is closely grazed grass and suitable for a landing. What's more, there is a country road nearby which connects to the main road half a mile away. The weather conditions are right so Biggles decides to stake out the field. For three nights, nothing happens but on the fourth night, they hear a car approaching along the country road. Not long after, a light plane comes in and executes an engine-off landing. The pilot and two passengers, one of them a woman, come out and are met by a man from the car. Biggles moves forward and places them all under arrest. The pilot, a British of Pakistani descent explains that he had flown in from France. He has been ferrying his countrymen who wished to enter Britain but for some reason were denied entry through the normal channels. In this case, his passengers were not allowed in because they were small pox contacts. The woman had come to join her husband, who was the man in the car. The four appear in the magistrate court the next day. For compassionate reasons, the woman, who had been vaccinated, was allowed to stay. The other passenger refused vaccination on religious grounds and had to return home. The pilot was fined and had his aircraft confiscated. Characters *Biggles *Ginger Hebblethwaite *John Moxen Aircraft *Auster J1 Autocrat Places Visited *Nuthatch Farm, Liverton, Somerset Mentioned *Chard, Somerset - the nearest town Research Notes References to the past Incongruities References Category:Short stories Category:Air Police era short stories Category:Biggles short stories